STARKVILLE, Miss. (AP) - VIctoria Vivians scored 23 points and Teaira McCowan had 21 points and 16 rebounds to help No. 2 Mississippi State beat Kentucky 74-55 on Sunday.
In front of a second-straight sellout crowd at Humphrey Coliseum, coach Vic Schaefer defeated Kentucky for the first time in his career. The Bulldogs had lost 11 straight games in the series before Sunday's win. Roshunda Johnson worked Mississippi State through a relatively cold first quarter, hitting five 3-pointers for 15 points. Despite the 35 percent shooting in the first 20 minutes, the Bulldogs were up 40-22.
Kentucky's Maci Morris got going in the third quarter scoring 11 points in the first 5:30 and helping the WIldcats close that 18-point lead down to nine at 50-41.
The Bulldogs(26-0, 12-0 SEC) got control of the ball game late in the period, extending the lead to 56-43 and the Wildcats never got it back down to single digits.
Kentucky (12-14, 4-8) was led by Morris' 21 points before she fouled out in the fourth quarter. They won the battle of the boards against the Bulldogs 39-33 but MSU forced 19 turnovers.
The Bulldogs also had double figure scoring from Johnson who had 17 points. Morgan William had eight assists in the win.
TIP-INS:
Kentucky: Morris reached double digits in points for the 22nd time this season. She's scored 20 or more in seven of those games.
Mississippi State: Vivians eclipsed 20 points for the 13th time this season while Teaira McCowan notched her 18th double-double of the year.
COME BACK FOR MORE:
The Bulldogs had the first sellout crowd in program history against South Carolina last Monday.
UP NEXT:
Kentucky hosts Arkansas on Thursday.
Mississippi State travels to Vanderbilt on Thursday.
